RCBC staff face money laundering complaint

BB reserve heist

MANILA, Nov 22: A money laundering complaint has been filed against the former treasurer of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. and five other bank employees over the shifting of $81 million that was stolen from Bangladesh's foreign reserves to one of its branches, reports ABS-CBN News Tuesday.

Agarrado and Torres were assigned with the bank's branch in Jupiter, Makati, which received the millions via wire transfer in February this year. No immediate charges were recommended against branch manager Maia Deguito.

"We welcome the charges as an opportunity to conclusively prove that our executives acted properly and had no knowledge or participation in any money laundering," the bank said in a statement.

"We are confident that the cases filed against these RCBC officers will be dismissed," it added.

The central bank's Monetary Board slapped the bank with a record P1-billion fine in August over its involvement in the caper, which exposed legal loopholes that made the country a money laundering destination.

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